The investigation into Sushant Singh Rajput's death is underway, with the CBI now handling the probe. Now, in an interview with India Today, Sushant's partner and actor Rhea Chakraborty finally opened up about the time she realised Sushant was suffering from a mental health problem.
When Rajdeep Sardesai asked about what happened during Sushant and Rhea's Europe trip, Rhea said that before boarding the aircraft Sushant had mentioned he felt claustrophobic in flights.
"The day we were about to leave for Europe, Sushant told us that he feels claustrophobic in flights and he takes a medicine for that. He always had the pills with him and before the journey he took it".Rhea Chakraborty, Actor
Rhea further said that when they landed in Paris, Sushant did not leave the hotel room for three days. "I was a little surprised because Sushant was very excited about this vacation. Sushant had told me that since no one knows him in the foreign country, he will show me his true side, his fun nature".
She added that in their next destination, Switzerland, Sushant was absolutely fine. "He was energetic, very happy and we also did quite a bit of sightseeing. After that we went to Italy. We put up at a gothic-themed hotel, Palazzo Magnani Feroni, but we were not aware of that while booking. Our room had a dome like structure and their were weird images. I was quite scared but Sushant assured me that everything will be fine", Rhea said.
Rhea recalled a strange incident that took place that night.
Sushant could not sleep that night because he felt that there was something strange about the hotel. I told him it must have been a bad dream but we were all very worried. I insisted that we check out from the hotel but Sushant was adamant to stay on. After that Sushant condition deteriorated and he didn't want to step out of the room throughout the trip.He then revealed that he went through a phase of depression in 2013 and even consulted a psychiatrist, whose name I think was Mr Harish Shetty".Rhea Chakraborty
Rhea continued saying that then Sushant disclosed that the medicine he takes had been prescribed by the psychiatrist. "By then I had started suspecting something was wrong. Sushant also said that after treatment he was keeping well. There were some stray episodes of anxiety attacks. However, in the Europe trip Sushant was feeling very anxious and depressed so we cut short the trip".
Rhea also spoke why her brother accompanied them on the trip. "Showik and Sushant were very close. Right before the trip Showik, Sushant and I formed a company and named it Rhealityx. Given that Sushant named his dream project related to artificial intelligence after me, it's safe to assume that he liked me. Since we were partners in the firm, we each had to deposit Rs 33,000. I paid my brother's share since he wasn't employed then. Apart from this, there was no transaction from that company".
Rhea also said that on Sushant's insistence, her brother joined them in Florence.
When asked about the allegations that Rhea and her family were 'living off Sushant' and that the late actor paid for the entire Europe trip Rhea replied, "I was supposed to go to Paris for a shoot and my business class tickets and hotels were booked by the company. But Sushant thought this was a great chance for a trip, cancelled the tickets and booked first class ones. He also paid for the hotels because he wanted to. I didn't have a problem with that, what I hesitated was the amount he was spending on that vacation. But Sushant led a king-size life, he was like that. Before I came into his life, Sushant had gone on a trip to Thailand with his friends, wherein he had spent Rs 70 lakhs. That was his lifestyle".
On 28 July, an FIR was filed by Sushant's father KK Singh against Rhea Chakraborty under various sections, including abetment to suicide.
(At The Quint, we question everything. Play an active role in shaping our journalism by becoming a member today.)